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June 15, 2007 -- Scientists may have found a new way to test urine for signs
of bladder cancer.

A protein called A1BG seems to be more common in the urine of bladder cancer patients than in the
urine of people without bladder cancer.

That's according to researchers from the University of Florida in
Gainesville and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. They included the
University of Florida's Steve Goodison, PhD.

Bladder cancer is one of the world's five most common cancers, according to
Goodison's team.

The American Cancer Society estimates that there will be more than 67,000
new cases of bladder cancer and about 13,750 deaths from bladder cancer in the
U.S. this year.

Like many other cancers, bladder cancer is more treatable in its early
stages. "When detected early, the five-year survival rate is approximately
94%," Goodison's team writes.

Voided urine cytology is currently the method of choice for diagnosing
bladder cancer without invasive tests. But that test isn't always accurate and
it doesn't deliver rapid results, note the researchers.

Bladder Cancer Study

Goodison and colleagues screened urine samples from five bladder cancer
patients and five people without bladder cancer.

The scientists identified 168 urine proteins. One of those proteins stood
out.

That protein, called A1BG, was found in all of the bladder cancer patients'
samples. But it wasn't found in the urine samples of participants without
bladder tumors.

The A1BG protein might make a good, quick urine test for bladder cancer
and a possible target for bladder cancer treatment. But bigger studies are
needed to test that theory, note Goodison and colleagues.